sweet&selfish
by m00nbabe
Summary: Chloe and Marinette have a way of finding each other. But, loving, being loved, and coming clean about it all is another story. It’s a game of who can break first, you or your beard?
1. Sunbathing&Beards

_Some days feel long enough to stretch over yourself, over the entire city, a warm blanket to nap under. _

_Some days deserve songs about them, when the sun is high and lazy and thinking is optional. _

_Some days should never end._

_This was one of **those**__ days_.

Chloe blindly reached into the bowl of strawberries that sat beside her chair. Her hand disappeared under her oversized sun hat before emerging again to flip her page of Vogue. The heat rolled over her back and legs, kissing her already tanned skin. She looked good, like always, the picturesque socialite she was. Even the thin line of sweat that traced her spine looked meticulously placed, trailing her body line like she was in an _Acqua di Gio_ ad.

Marinette lounged beside her, earphones in but music off. Maybe she wanted to soak up the sounds of the city in summer, or maybe she liked the smooth swipe of Chloe's nails across her magazine's pages. The sun didn't mix well with her fair complexion, but she couldn't complain. There were much worse things to do than spend an afternoon by the pool at _Le Grand Paris_, especially with such good weather, and company.

Besides, it was unusual to have a second of real peace, just the two of them, these days. In a loud city like Paris, they both knew they were enjoying these sweet moments on borrowed time; too good to be true, _too__ perfect_.

Marinette waged the war in her head; _was it worth it to break the silence of their sanctuary or face Chloe's wrath later? _Save for Jean the Butler's incremental appearances this afternoon, to ask them if they needed anything, it was just the two of them and the sun. But that wasn't going to last, either.

The ripples of the Bourgeois' private pool gave off a feint glow, reflecting across the deck, and Marinette traced their dance across Chloe's foot. She didn't dare look any further, afraid to catch Chloe's eyes when she spoke, afraid of seeing their intense _blue_. Instead she grabbed a strawberry herself, twirled it between her fingertips and took out her redundant earbuds.

Better to rip off the bandaid,

"I'm going out with Adrien Agreste tonight." she popped the strawberry in her mouth.

"_And?_" Chloe didn't take her eyes off the page, didn't move save for the slight way her shoulders regained the tension she'd slowly peeled off all day.

Marinette took one last moment that she could steal, to just look at Chloe, before the ensuing fight really started. She loved her like this, just _Chloe_. Rarely did she get to just watch her, but this moment, too, was about to end.

Chloe was in the bathing suit they'd bought last month, when they had taken a day trip to Giverny. Marinette had mentioned her love for _Water Lillies_ offhandedly once, without thinking twice about the statement. Chloe bought them two train tickets. Mari didn't hesistate to jump on board. So they left, neither having a bag or plan. Sure enough they ending up in Monet's Gardens.

The garden was beautiful.

_They_ were beautiful.

_Everything was beautiful._

But it was _tragically beautiful_ when Marinette turned to her, the way she always would, like she had the best secret to tell her, like there was some light in the dark dumb world held in these words she was about to say.

It was tragic when she whispered how _beautiful_ it would be to get married here, in these gardens.

That day they decided to lounge along the Seine. They told each other it would be a waste of a trip not to stay a few more hours. What they didn't say is how it would be a waste of a day not to spend it _together_.

Chloe bought the suit at a gift shop dedicated to Monet, right by the train station. It was a rip off price for the thing, but something about the way Marinette looked at the gardens made Chloe want that gaze on her. It couldn't hurt either that those suits, which looked horrible on just about everyone, looked perfect on her. For the first time, Chloe was actually glad her Daddy's money had bought her a personal trainer. It might have been worth it modelling for her mother's designs all these years for _this_ moment.

Now, Marinette was tracing the painting's designs with her eye, carefully picking her next words.

"I just thought you should know."

At this, Chloe finally turned the magazine page. Marinette didn't comment on how many times she watched Chloe pretended to read the small write up in the top corner of the spread. She couldn't see her face, but the sparkles on Chloe's manicure spoke for her, shaking slightly. The movement was barely there, but Chloe was losing her grip.

"Well that's very nice of you, but I couldn't give less of a fuck..."

"Okay." Marinette paused, another strawberry in hand, waiting for the anger to catch up to Chloe. She was about to eat the fruit when Chloe started again, "Does he _know_ he's your personal beard? Or do you prefer to call him your _pet_?"

She still hadn't looked up from her magazine, but the pages might as well have been blank.

Marinette stretched her back out and sat up in her lounger. From this angle, the pool tiles were a lot easier to focus on.

"He's not my beard, I _like_ him."

Another strawberry.

"I like macarons. But I wouldn't stick one up my-"

"Okay Chloe. I'm going out with him. End of story."

At this, Chloe finally looked over. Sunglasses perched on her slim nose, sun hat hiding most of her hair save for a few golden locks peaking out, and eyes intent on the girl beside her.

"Why don't you just send yourself to the nunnery and get over this charade that is dating Adrien?"

Marinette peaked a glance at the blond. Bad idea.

"He's not necessarily _everything_ I want..." Marinette pulled away from the stare down, "...but at least he _wants_ to be everything."

She leant back for a strawberry, but Chloe's hand grasped hers before she could.

"You know I would...be that...if I could."

The sun might have paused in the sky, to watch the two. _Was the air always this heavy? _

"That's the thing, Chlo," Marinette looked at her small hand, grasped in Chloe's tanned one, turning it over. She pulled the hands towards her face, towards her lips. The reverent way she placed a kiss on Chloe's knuckles made the blond breathe a small gasp.

_"...we both know you won't." _

Marinette put Chloe's hand back on her recliner, and got up from her chair. Their perfect day had come to a close


	2. Lemondrops&EDM

Of all the guys in the city, Adrien Agreste was not...the _worst_.

Of all the guys Marinette could go on a pointless date with, Adrien was at least a nice guy. Not even a Nice Guy️, but a genuinely good person.

Adrien was one of the few guys Chloe met that hadn't tried anything on her. Maybe it made him a lot less fun to do a photo shoot with, but respectable in his own way.

Of all the guys in this city, Adrien Agreste was the closest they came to _deserving_ Marinette.

Chloe hated him for it.

Was Chloe being petty, purposely heading to the bar she knew Marinette brought all her flings to? Yes. But wasn't Marinette also being petty bringing these men to a bar where she knew Chloe would be waiting? _Maybe they really were made for each other._

Now, as the only door in the bar casted first sky blue and then indigo across the poorly lit entry, Chloe was growing tired of waiting. How many hours had passed since Marinette had left her by the pool? Since she had entered this dive in the first place?

Waiting left time for thinking, and Chloe's mind was wandering into her own personal hell. If Marinette wasn't here yet, she'd be with _him_, walking hand-in-hand down the streets of Paris, the city of love, or sex, or whatever. By now he'd be leaning into her ear, palm low on her back and pointing out some architectural detail of the city. Boys loved to point things out to you, like they'd get a gold star for knowing which dead guy designed a fancy door knob. But, Marinette would play along. She would give him those big eyes and awed expression, and if dumb Adrien Agreste wasn't already hooked, he would be by the way she'd grasp his bicep, pretending to be shocked by his sheer _manly intellect_. Guys ate that shit up.

At this point, guys get a little cocky; who wouldn't feel on top of the world when Marinette gives them that little giggle? He might start bragging about where he goes to school, his job, his social life, anything to hang onto her smile. But nonetheless, it's still a fake. Years went into producing that well doctored expression. Many a beard had sculpted her into the perfect date, it was almost effortless now.

Chloe, on the off chance she fed the green monster inside her, was not nearly as convincing. A more direct strategy worked best for her. Getting a date was easy enough; men are moths to a flame when you show a little cleavage. The tough part, Chloe had found, was keeping up a conversation with the lesser sex. She had an efficient system for the whole ordeal. To avoid any unnecessary time spent humouring the male ego, the best course of action was to meet them at the bar, preferably _their_ bar, dance with them until she caught sight of a familiar set of freckles, and then drag them out of there by the neck tie and send them home in cab with a new number in their phone. Her preference of late was the number for the Indian Take-Out joint a couple blocks down from her apartment, with a "Chloe 3" on the ID line.

But even then, those nights ended the same way this night would end. No matter who they started out the night with, they would find each other by the end of it.

That's why, even as she downed her fourth lemon drop, pushing out the disgusting thought of Adrien Agreste with _her_ Marinette, Chloe wasn't worried. A little annoyed, but not worried. A few more hours and it would be over. Marinette would find her after the whole Adrien debacle was over, remembering why she gave up men in the first place and she'd be back in Chloe's arms.

For now, another drink. Alcohol, however shitty the bartender mixing it, was alcohol, and it helped drown out the incessant drone of EDM, while the star couple made their way here. This suffocating bass was only a comfort when Chloe was looking for a little well deserved privacy. She could do without the smell of beer and sweat, too. Hopefully Marinette would be guiding her new pet through the doors of this shit-hole soon, and they'd have enough time to sneak off for some late night drinks at a more...refined establishment.

Speak of the devil, Chloe spotted the bleached gold highlights from across the room, a small Marinette likely in tow. And that was Chloe's queue to get her shit together. Ten seconds passed before she had checked her makeup, straightened her top and started up a conversation with some random guy trying to order GTs for him and his friends. Chloe only gave him a once over, took in his rolled up sleeves and jeans that desperately needed hemming and decided she didn't have enough energy to go for a more challenging target.

"One of those for me?" Chloe tilted her head towards his drinks.

"It could be. I'm Bastien" he extended his hand.

_Too easy_.

"Chloe" she purred in response.

"You wanna dance?" Bastien's eyes flickered between the tight bustier Chloe had hand-picked for tonight's activities, and her semi-sinister smile.

"I thought you'd _never_ ask".

It was hot and sweaty on the dance floor, but she still managed to find those same familiar freckles every time. Eyes met while they continued to dance. She gazed at Marinette in the crowd the way they do in those romantic movies, across a vast sea of people, with their eyes locked and their heart beats matching the sound of the bass. But instead of a slow walk to the center of the floor, where the two would embrace and _"never let go"_, they both stayed on opposite sides.

Show time.

Marinette was a breath of fresh air in this dank old bar. She didn't belong in the world of late night drunken stupors and worn-out has beens. She was strawberry macarons and light perfume on the wrist. She was soft, warm and sweet like honey. She deserved better. Chloe could give her better.

Chloe took the opportunity to wrap her arms around-_what was his name_-Bastien's waste, snaking her hands into his back jean pockets. She barely registered his answering chuckle. From her vantage point, it was difficult for Marinette to see more than the guy's back and Chloe's petit hands, but it was enough for her to stumble on Adrien's foot. Always a gentleman, Adrien held onto her arms to keep her steady, but her drink was jostled in the process, and a large stain now decorated her blouse.

However, Chloe knew better than to celebrate. Quickly, Adrien was already grabbing Marinette's hand and pulling her to a booth. He left her for only a moment before returning with water and a bar rag. Chloe's temporary date continued to sway, attempting to turn their bodies, but Chloe was quick to yank them back into position, to her view from the perch of his shoulder.

Adrien was dabbing her shirt.

The pea-brained moron was _touching_ her shirt.

She was _letting_ the flee bag _touch_ her shirt.

Marinette wasn't even looking at the stain, she was just watching him work.

Then, quick as lightning, she grabbed his face and smashed his lips to her own.

Chloe's mind stopped, along with her body; _she was not seeing this_.

Maybe it was a trick of the light, but Chloe could swear Marinette peeked one eye open, looking at her.

Chloe let out a _"fuck you_" under her breath.

Bastien peaked over at her, registering her gravelly voice, obviously getting the wrong idea.

Chloe cut her dumb date off before he even got a chance, "Don't even think about it."

The imaginary kiss quota was up -_thank god_\- and Marinette finally pulled away from her date, a bashful look on her face. A low growl emerged from Chloe's throat as Mari went for the "_I can't believe i just did that!" _hand over the mouth move. She was good at playing the Vestile Virgin, that's for sure. She looked over the dance floor once, and got up.

Poor Bastien was ditched before he even got a real chance; Chloe had disappeared without a "bye".

The hall to the washroom was like one big grungy bulletin board, covered in flyers and posters. Chloe snagged a tear-away number for tango lessons, maybe Marinette would take a class with her. It was that or math tutoring with "Chris", from the flyer beside it. Half way through the ad for a "witch heaven" and crystals store, Marinette emerged from the bathroom. The bar towel was nursed over her arm, her bishops blouse still marred from the spill.

Chloe didn't dare look at the way the thin material clung to Marinette after her futile attempts to scrub out the stain. She ignored the flush of her skin under the haze of cigarette smoke, and swollen lips from the awful kiss she had witnessed. She made sure to avoid those piercing eyes, demanding the truth, demanding her.

Her own icy blue eyes stayed fixed on the wall, refusing to see.

"Nice weather we're having, huh?" Chloe joked, no sign of humour in her voice.

"Why are you here?"

"Same as you." Chloe flashed her a challenge in her stare, but dropped it just as quickly.

"You're also on a date with Adrien?" Mari's arms defended her from Chloe's oncoming remarks, crossed and ready.

"Something like that."

"Well, good to see you-" Mari made to leave before they got into anything. Here, beside the ladies room, was a shitty place to deal with everything.

"Nuh-uh," the blonde cut her off, "don't play dumb. I'm a little tired off this place, but judging by the duration of that smacking of lips you call a kiss, I'm guessing you are too. So now that you had your fun, let's get back on track. Meet me in a half hour, I'll text you the place."

"I'm going home with Adrien tonight." Mari leaned against the opposing wall, resigned in her decision.

"To do what? Paint each other's nails? You're being annoying." She placed one hand beside where Mari's head hit the wall. A finger of her other hand slowly traced the line where Marinette's pants and shirt parted ways, "Send lover boy home. Put us all out if our misery."

Marinette's chest rose and fell a little faster, but she showed no other sign of Chloe's effect. If anything, she jutted out her chin in defiance. She didn't break eye contact when she whispered, "I like him. I told you today, he's not a beard."

"You keep saying that," Chloe glanced at her mouth, tempted. Suddenly, she was thankful for the crowd of drunks that roamed the hallway like zombies, giving them a moment's privacy, "but I don't believe you..."

Mari's gaze finally flickered; he brows knit for a millisecond, and eyes darted ever so slightly, but then then the facade returned.

"Well you should. Because we're seeing each other. I'm dating Adrien, so you should back off."

Ah. So _that's_ how it was.

"Listen Dupain-Cheng, I don't care _who_ you date, or _what_ you do, who you _think_ you love. You wanna play around with some brain-dead moron who lost one too many brain cells at his last bleach job, go ahead." Chloe was inching closer, "You need a beard to make you feel wanted or whatever, to satisfy your parents' backwards agenda, be my guest!" Marinette could feel Chloe's breath on her face, terrifyingly beautiful from an inch away. Chloe growled, from somewhere deep and low, "But no matter what, you're gonna end up running back to me. And I'll always wait for you, because we're endgame."

It was Chloe's turn to leave Marinette this time. Marinette stayed propped up by the hallway, stunned and a little out of breath, the name Adrien Agreste the furthest thing from her mind.


End file.
